Betsy DeVos Goes From Ideas to ActionEWA Radio: Episode 127

Alyson Klein of Education Week and Andrew Kreighbaum of Inside
Higher Ed discuss recent developments on the federal policy
front, and what’s been a busy month for U.S. Secretary of
Education Betsy DeVos. The Education Department has hit the
“pause button” on regulations aimed at reining in for-profit
colleges, announced plans to scale back civil rights
investigations, and suggested federal scrutiny of state
accountability plans for K-12 education could be more forceful
than some people — particularly Republicans — were expecting.
How do these actions fit with President Donald Trump’s campaign
pledges to have a lighter federal footprint on education matters,
while also reversing some of the Obama administration’s signature
initiatives? And what has DeVos staked out as her priorities in
the handful of public speeches she’s given so far, including to
the nation’s largest gathering of charter school
advocates?

Emily Richmond is the public editor of the Education Writers
Association. She coordinates programming and training
opportunities for members and provides individualized reporting
and writing help to journalists. She also hosts the EWA
Radio podcast, and authors EWA’s “The Educated Reporter”
blog.

Kimberly Hefling of Politico discusses the new U.S.
secretary of education, Betsy DeVos, who was confirmed Tuesday
after Vice President Mike Pence was called in to break a 50-50
tie in the Senate. What will be her top priorities moving
forward? How aggressively will the new secretary push school
choice, and how likely is President Trump’s $20 billion school
choice plan to gain traction? Has DeVos lost political capital
during the bruising confirmation process? Was she held to a
higher standard than other nominees for President Trump’s
cabinet? And how much power will the Republican mega-donor have
to roll back the Obama administration’s education policies and
initiatives?

President Donald Trump’s first budget blueprint begins to flesh
out the areas in which he sees an important federal role in
education — most notably expanding school choice — and those he
doesn’t. At the same time, it raises questions about
the fate of big-ticket items, including aid to
improve teacher quality and support after-school
programs.